The Remarkable
by DelenaxKlaroline
Summary: Elena believes that she and Damon will someday get their happily ever after, but when a new vampire named Annabella comes to town, she begins to win over Damon's heart instead. Damon claims that he and Annabella are nothing more than acquaintances, but Elena senses there's a deeper meaning to their relationship that goes farther than friendship and love.
1. Prologue

This is my first fic, and I'm really excited about it! :)

I'm also going to add that this supposedly takes place during Season 3 at some point as Jenna is dead, Elena is human, and Alaric and Jeremy are still alive.

So without further ado, I bring you the prologue to _The Remarkable. _

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries.**

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Prologue

There was a clink of glass in the background and the sound of the music in the background as Damon Salvatore pressed his right hand against Tatum Wellington's back. He moved his hand so that it was against her waist, and with his other hand, he moved Tatum's hair so that it was out of the way. Pulling Tatum closer to him, Damon moved his mouth so that it was against Tatum's right ear. He felt Tatum slowly back away, and Damon twirled her around, her soft hands brushing against his fingers as she spun.

"Damon…" Tatum said quietly.

Damon gave a sly smile, bringing Tatum close to him so that their lips were almost touching.

"Tatum," he murmured. "This is the 1940s, a time to live."

Tatum raised her eyebrows and turned her head to the side. "Damon," she said. "I'm not like you."

"What do you mean?" Damon asked.

Tatum sighed, moving her hair back to its initial position falling down her back. She turned her gaze so that she was looking straight into Damon's eyes. "You know what I mean, Mr. Vampire. Don't play with me."

"But, Miss Human," Damon replied, his eyes mischievous. "You know that we can be together forever if you ask for it."

There was a flicker of uncertainty in Tatum's eyes before she pressed her head against Damon's chest. Damon bent his head down so that he could smell her hair, the scent of the lavender shampoo that she had used the night before wafting up his nose. But Damon could tell that there was something different about her, even if she wasn't going to say it.

"Tatum, what's wrong?" Damon whispered, the words barely audible. "You know I'll understand, no matter what it is."

Pulling away from Damon's Chest, Tatum looked Damon in the eyes, a look that was mixed with guilt and regret. "Damon," she said slowly. "I'm going to be honest with you because I love you." She spoke each word slowly as though she wasn't even certain she wanted to say what was going to say.

"I know what you're going to say," Damon said. "Just say it."

"I'm so sorry, Damon," Tatum said quickly, as Damon released his hold on her waist. "It's just that you're so different from me, and then there's someone else…"

"Someone else, huh?" Damon gave a quick shake of his head. "I should've known."

"It's not your fault, Damon," Tatum continued quickly. "But you—you should've known that this was never going to go anywhere. I just wish it didn't have to end like this. We were saving so much fun."

"But fun is good!" Damon persisted.

"I need more than fun, Damon. I—I'm human. You're not. You don't have to worry about the future like I do. You're going to live forever."

"Right…" Damon said slowly. "It's not your fault. I should have known."

"I'm so—" Tatum tried to begin, but Damon just interrupted.

"Please go."

Tatum hesitated before backing away and hurrying out the door. Damon stared after her as she headed outside. Damon heard the sound of the wind chimes as Tatum shut the door after her. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, making sure that no one was watching. Then he shot himself out of the door so that he was standing in front of Tatum who was evidently crying. The evening breeze blew Tatum's hair in front of her face.

"Damon, look—" Tatum tried to continue.

"I don't want to hear it," Damon said tersely.

Tatum looked at Damon desperately and uncertainly. "I'm going. You won't have to hear from me again, I promise. Just don't hurt me. You promised."

Damon pressed his finger to his lips and as if on cue, Tatum pursed her mouth shut. Damon grabbed Tatum, pushing her up against the alleyway besides the bar they had just been in.

"What're you doing?" Tatum asked, her voice a whisper.

"We were supposed to live together forever," Damon hissed, anger flaring in his eyes.

Tatum gave Damon a look of wild fear, but Damon ignored it. He took a deep breath before plunging his teeth into Tatum's neck.

The last thing he heard from her was her cry for help.

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So how was it? I know that not much happened, but remember it's only a prologue! It's a set up for the entire book that you're about to read. And because I want to make this book the best that it can be, please review it and tell me what you think. It would mean the world to me. :) And if I could, I would compel you to review. JK.

xx.


	2. Chapter 1: Howl of the Wind

Greetings, fellow readers! It has been over a week since I started this, and unfortunately, I have been quite busy for the better part of this week. But now that I'm available again, I'm taking the time to write the first chapter of his fic! :D

Also, thanks to all those who reviewed, favorited, and followed! It means a lot.

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries.**

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Chapter 1: Howl of the Wind

Caroline gave Elena a warm smile as she zipped up the last of her dress. "Perfect," Caroline smiled, smoothing out the last of the creases on it. Elena spun around in the navy blue dress in front of the mirror, so that she could see her reflection. She twisted her head so that she could see the back of her dress in the mirror.

"How do I look?" Elena asked proudly.

"Beautiful," Caroline said, smiling, grasping Elena from behind on her shoulders. "Damon won't be able to take his eyes off of you the entire night."

"Thanks, Caroline," Elena replied, feeling the silk rub against the side of her skin. She picked up her matching blue purse that was seated on the couch beside the mirror, and Caroline patted Elena on the back.

"You're going to have so much fun tonight!"

Elena gave a small laugh. "It is true that Damon is the king of romance."

Caroline gave a small jump, her face overflowing with a large smile. "You know it. Come on, let's go. You don't want to be too late."

Elena headed down the stairs of Caroline's house, her friend close on her tail. Downstairs, Caroline was quick to grab Elena's coat, handing it out to her.

"You don't want to move too much," Caroline said. "You don't want to ruin your dress."

"Caroline!" Elena laughed. "I'll be fine."

"Oh, I know," Caroline replied. "I just want you to have the _best_ night." She gave a little jump. "You'll have to tell me all about it."

"Of course, Caroline," Elena replied with a large smile.

There was a moment's hesitation as Elena headed for the door. The lights flickered for a moment, making Elena's eyes widen in surprise.

"It's just the lights," Caroline replied. "They're old."

"Right," Elena nodded awkwardly.

There was a moment of uncertainty that passed between the two of them, but after a moment, Elena turned towards the door. A moment later, though, she turned back to Caroline, a question on the tip of her tongue.

"Caroline?"

"Mm hmm?" Caroline asked, a smile still etched across her face as she watched her friend.

"Are you happy?"

Caroline didn't flinch when Elena asked, a response that Elena had expected. "Of course, Elena." When Elena didn't say anything, Caroline knew that she wanted more of answer. "But this night isn't about me. It's about you. Don't ask me those questions. I should be the one asking you."

Elena gave a small laugh. Caroline always put her friends first. Elena walked back over to Caroline, the sound of her heels ringing around the empty house. "No, Caroline, I know you're happy. You always are." Elena reached out to touch her friend's hand. "I mean… are you happy with Tyler?"

Caroline gave a nod, but Elena could make out the uncertainty in her face. "He's amazing, Elena. I don't know what I'd do without him."

_But you miss Klaus,_ Elena thought. She'd never have the heart to tell Caroline that she knew how much she missed him. She knew how important Klaus had been to Caroline before he'd left even if Caroline would never admit it. Elena still remembered the first time that he'd told them he was moving to New Orleans with his family. Elena could still remember the look of hurt and anguish that had crossed Caroline's face like it was yesterday, although it had been over a month.

"I know, Caroline," Elena replied. "I just feel like you're missing out on something."

"Elena." Caroline took Elena's hands in hers and looked her straight in the eyes. "If something was bothering me, don't you think I'd tell you?"

"Of course!"

"Then please." Caroline seemed as if she was trying to get the point across so that Elena wouldn't bring the topic up again. "For my sake, _please_ stop worrying about me and start thinking about yourself."

"O—okay, Caroline," Elena said, slightly taken aback. "I will. I just worry about you because you're my best friend."

"And that's why I love you," Caroline replied. "But sometimes, I don't need you to worry about me."

Elena nodded. "All right. I understand."

Elena released her grip on Caroline's hands and turned away. There was a part of her that knew Caroline wasn't telling her something, but she wasn't going to press her friend further. If Caroline wanted to talk about it, she'd talk. If not, Elena would let her keep quiet until she was ready to share what it was.

"You need to go, Elena," Caroline said. "Damon is going to be waiting."

Elena nodded. "Yeah, I do." She opened the door. "Thank you, Caroline. You have no idea how much this means to me that you helped me out tonight. I don't know what Alaric would have thought if he'd seen me getting dressed for a date with his best friend."

Caroline waved Elena off. "I know. Now go! Don't leave Damon waiting."

Elena laughed, hurrying down the driveway, calling out a last goodbye and thanks to Caroline. But even as she left, she felt as though there was something that Caroline just wasn't telling her.

Elena pulled the door to her car open and sat down, pulling out her cell phone. She saw one missed call from _Damon Salvatore._ Elena felt an irresistible smile spreading across her face, and she quickly dialed Damon back while fumbling around in her purse for her keys.

On the third ring, Damon picked up the phone just as Elena found her keys. She leaned back in the driver's seat, twiddling with the keys in her fingers.

"Elena?" Damon asked, his voice low and seductive as always.

Elena had to hold back a laugh as she found the key on the keychain that she was looking for. "Hi, Damon."

"I know you're laughing," Damon replied.

"I know you know I am," Elena replied, still smiling. "No need to deny it."

"Funny, Elena. I just called to tell you I'm running late."

Elena stuck the key into the ignition and turned it so that the car was on. She then turned to the radio and lowered the volume so she could still hear Damon on the phone.

"It's okay, Damon," Elena replied. "I'm just leaving Caroline's now."

Damon chuckled. "So I'm not the only not following my schedule."

"Well, you're going to make me later if you don't hang up now," Elena replied.

"You don't drive and talk, eh?"

"Shut up, Damon!" Elena laughed. "You know that. I'll see you in half an hour."

Elena could hear Damon about to throw back a reply, but she hung up before he could, laughing to herself. She tossed her phone back into her purse, turning up the volume on the radio before pressing the gas pedal and speeding out of Caroline's driveway.

Elena rolled down the window slightly, feeling the evening wind rake past her face. Her hair which was pinned up into a tight bun on top of her head swayed slightly, and Elena reached her hand up to feel it to make sure all of her hair hadn't come out of it yet.

Elena rolled the window up so that it was almost completely shut and felt the music she was listening to in her ears. "Perfect," she murmured to herself. Elena closed her eyes for a brief moment, before opening them again to turn around a bend in the road.

Elena sighed, before hearing a howl. She hesitated, tensing in her seat, wondering what it was. The howl had an echo to it like it was far away, but at the same time, it felt like it was right beside her in the passenger seat. She turned to see if there was anything there. It was empty. She pressed down on the gas pedal a little harder, speeding up before she heard the howling again. This time Elena slammed down on the brakes, stopping the car in shock. Elena unbuckled her seat belt and turned around to look to see if there was anything there. She chided herself, telling herself that she was making a fuss over nothing, but even as she tried to convince herself of that, she knew that it was a lie.

Elena buckled her seatbelt and was about to drive off again, but stopped. Something was holding her back, but she couldn't figure out what it was. She opened up the car door, looking around. There weren't any lights on the street, and it took Elena a moment to realize that she was in complete silence and that the radio had turned off on its own. Elena tensed, wondering what was going on. She backed slowly towards her car, quickly sitting down, and buckling her seatbelt.

As she did, she felt a gush of wind whip by her. Elena felt her heart stop, and she closed her eyes, trying to block it out.

_Elleeeeeeeeeena. _

Elena could feel the wind whispering her name, and she heard the howl once more, this time closer than ever. Shutting the door, Elena held back a scream as she pushed down on the gas pedal as hard as she could. She heard the sound of another car behind her, and frantically, Elena tried to drive faster to get away. She knew she was being followed, but she couldn't make out who it was.

_Elleeeeeeeeeena._

Elena felt the wind calling her name, and with a terrified scream, she missed a ditch that was in the road. Swerving to the side, Elena tried to get out of the way, but found that she couldn't.

"Ack!" Elena cried as she felt her car tumble over the ditch and skid onto the side of the road. In a panic, Elena spun the steering wheel in circle, barely missing a tree. She tried to turn herself around again, but in desperation, found that she couldn't. With a last screech, Elena felt herself completely lose control as her car skidded across the road and into a tree nearby.

Elena let out a moan, trying to make sense of herself and her surroundings. She struggled to figure out where the other car was, but she couldn't without her head throbbing in pain. Elena let out another mumble, trying to call for help. She couldn't tell if her words made sense either, because before she knew it, everything turned to black.

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And thus, Elena has been caught in turmoil! Can't wait to find out what happens to poor little Elena next. Reviews are appreciated!

xx.


	3. Chapter 2: Mystery Savior

Thanks to the few of you who reviewed, favorited, and commented! :D

In return, I bring you the next chapter of this book.

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Chapter 2: Mystery Savior

"Urghhhhh."

Elena paused, looking around her, trying to make out her surroundings. Her vision was blurry, and when she tried to lift her head, she found that she couldn't. Elena finally managed to blink open her eyes and clear her vision. Her head felt so heavy that it took all of the remaining energy that she had to pick it up and look out of the front window of the car. She moaned as all she saw was a mass of trees. Elena hesitated for a moment, trying to remember where she was. And then, all of a sudden, all of the memories came back in a complete rush. Talking with Caroline, the phone call with Damon, the howls, the following… Elena closed her eyes, trying to convince herself that it was a dream, and it had never happened, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't. It had happened. All of it was real.

Elena twisted her head, trying to see out of the side window of the car, but her neck felt locked in place, as though she had been pinned down by black magic all of a sudden. Elena groaned, kicking her feet, but knowing that it was helpless for trying to get anywhere. After a moment, she wrenched her head to the side to see how far away her phone was, and let out a pathetic wail as she realized it was too far away for her to reach.

Elena closed her eyes, feeling tears begin well in the corners of them, once again blurring her vision. Weakly, Elena lifted a shaking right hand that seemed to find the strength to move up to her eye. She brushed away her tears when the next moment she heard a tapping sound on the window.

For a moment, Elena was in shock, unable to believe that someone was actually… _there._ Who was actually going to be able to find her at this hour of the night? Although, in truth, Elena didn't even know how late it was. She closed her eyes, reaching for the door, but found herself barely able to move her hand. Weakly, she tried again, but eventually her hand just dropped, tingling and numb.

"Please help…" Elena called, but her voice sounded unique to her. It sounded hoarse and husky, although she was being possessed by someone that wasn't her. "I can't…"

The next moment, the tapping came again. Elena tried to reach out to the door, but once again, found that she couldn't. The next moment, as if on cue and as if someone was there to save Elena, she heard a shattering sound from the back of the car. Elena let out a scream and cry, holding in her breath, but the next moment felt a cool, calming hand on her arm.

"Shhh…" the voice said. "It's okay. I'm here."

Elena struggled to turn around to see who it was, but found that she couldn't.

"Don't try to move," the girl said, then moving herself in position so that Elena could see her. Elena didn't recognize her, but she had long, beautiful brunette waves. She looked like she was Elena's age, maybe a year or two younger, and she had piercing green eyes that burned like emeralds in the night. "You don't want to hurt yourself more."

The girl took her hand and placed it into the glove compartment, moving her hand around until she found a flashlight, and she flicked it on. The girl shined it on Elena's face.

"How is this?" she asked.

Elena looked at her, blinking against the light. The girl was much tinier than she'd seemed in the shadows, and she looked pure and angelic in the light. For a moment, Elena thought she was hallucinating and didn't believe the girl was real.

"What's going to happen to me?" Elena mumbled, noticing blood that was dripping down the side of her leg.

"You're going to be okay," the girl replied gently, looking Elena in the eyes. "Do you feel okay? Can you hear me okay?"

Elena gave a feeble nod.

The next moment, she took her hands and moved them away from Elena's and up to her neck. Elena tensed, wondering what the girl was going to do to her, and she recoiled, kicking her leg out to try and stop the girl.

"Ow!" the girl cried, grabbing her stomach as Elena made contact with it.

"What're you doing?" Elena asked trembling.

"You—you have a necklace," the girl said. "You know…"

The girl wrapped her hand around the necklace, sending a shiver down Elena's spine. "Please don't hurt me," Elena whispered.

The girl didn't reply. Instead, she gave a Elena a curious look, fingering the necklace. After a moment, she made eye contact with Elena.

"You need blood," she said quickly. "Your—your head is bleeding. You may have a concussion, and—and God only knows what else."

Fleetingly, the girl put her wrist to her mouth, took a bite out of it and put it up to Elena's mouth. Instinctively, Elena swallowed the blood that came dripping into her mouth. She was immediately overwhelmed with a wholesome feeling, and she felt a rush of calm wind blow over her. She began to feel her body rejuvenating and all at once, she grabbed onto the girl's wrist, biting into it as hard as she could, trying to get as much blood as she had the time for.

When Elena had had her share, she backed away, and the girl looked at Elena for a moment. She gave a brief nod of relief and then moved away.

"Lean back," she told Elena gently. "I won't compel you. Just please do it."

Elena did as she was told, almost scared of who the girl was. "Who are you?"

The girl didn't respond. Instead, she sped out of the car. Elena heard a shattering of glass and knew that the girl had somehow managed to rush out, squeezing herself through the window. Elena let out a tiny wail, a feeling of loss and desperation and she quickly fumbled around, trying to find her phone. She needed Damon. Why hadn't he called yet? After a moment, she found it.

Her fingers were trembling as she picked it up. She tapped the home button, hoping that Damon would have maybe called, even left a message, but there was nothing.

Elena felt herself trembling, and she closed her eyes, hoping that the pain would go away. She could feel it coming back, and she could feel herself going numb.

It was too much. Elena felt her phone drop to the floor of her car with a thud and without putting any more effort in, she shut her eyes, hoping that when she finally woke up, she'd be in a better place with Damon's arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

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Fellow readers, I am sorry for the short chapter! But I thought that it was necessary to do so. The chapters start to get longer as the book goes on. Sorry about the opening short ones!

xx.


	4. Chapter 3: Break You or Fix You

Enjoy Chapter 3. :)

Thank for all of the feedback that I have received so far. It means so much to me.

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Vampire Diaries.**

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Chapter 3: Break You or Fix You

Elena opened her eyes, immediately remembering everything that had happened to her the night before. She let out a small groan, touching her hand to her forehead, noticing that the cut that had seemed huge the night before had gone down to only a scratch. Elena moaned, knowing that she owed her life to _that girl_. That girl had saved her life, and Elena knew that without a doubt she would be dead without her.

Elena stretched her arms out, finding herself able to move, but when she tried to open up the door let out a cry of pain as she realized that broken glass was all over. She grabbed her finger where the cut had formed and instinctively stuck it into her math to try to stop the bleeding. The uncomfortable, warm taste of blood filled her mouth and Elena blinked back the tears that formed in the small of her eyes, reminding her of when she was little and fell off her bike and used to cry. She shouldn't be crying. She wasn't a little girl anymore.

Elena yanked open the dashboard with her free hand and then picked a rag out of the dashboard, then tentatively taking her hand and pushing open the car door. Immediately, a gust of wind blew over Elena and she shivered against it, but forced herself to move her feet so that they were dangling above the ground. She then dropped the rag onto the floor of the car and pressed her hand up to the side of the car and cautiously stepped onto the grassy ground below. She felt her feet sway unsteadily, and she grabbed unsteadily onto the side of the car.

She looked around her, and could just make out how far off the road she'd run in the moonlight. She also couldn't tell what time it was, but at this point, Elena was fighting the wind. She wondered if Bonnie could sense that something was wrong with her.

Bonnie had used her magic to link her, Elena, and Caroline together so that she could detect if any of them were in trouble, or so that she could know if anything was wrong with any of them. Bonnie had also added that it wasn't just her who could detect if anything was wrong, but Elena and Caroline would be able to tell too. Elena wondered if Bonnie or Caroline sensed if anything was wrong with her. Whatever it was, Elena began to wonder if they had sent the unknown girl to her.

All of a sudden, Elena felt an unusually strong wind blow over her and she felt herself falling backwards. She tried to brace herself and steady her feet, and she let out a shrill scream. She couldn't stop herself, and she knew she was going to hit her head, but the next moment she felt herself landing in something soft.

Breathless, Elena tried to turn to see who it was, but her head felt dizzy.

"Hey, steady."

Elena immediately recognized the voice, and she took her hands, one of which was bloody, and pressed them up to her head as she felt herself gently laid down on the ground.

"Damon," she whimpered, breathing in a sigh of relief. She couldn't believe that someone had found her. "How did you find me?" Elena felt blood pulsing through her finger and she tried to move it.

"Shhh," Damon said quietly in his voice which was comforting as always. "Let me see," he said noting Elena's hand, and Elena unsteadily brought it up to his eyes so that he could exam it.

He squeezed down on it and Elena let out a small cry of pain.

"It's okay," Damon said gently, looking up at Elena's head where the scratch was marred across it. "Did—have you seen anyone since this happened?"

Elena tried to nod her head, but felt herself barely able to move it. "Someone… a girl."

Damon gave a small nod and took his coat and wrapped it around Elena's finger. "I don't want to give you any more blood," he said. "I think you'll be okay, although you may need some stitches."

"No, Damon, no," Elena said, tightly shutting her eyes and covering her hands with them. "I don't want stitches. I'd rather have your blood."

"Elena, we need to act human," Damon said tersely.

Elena didn't bother arguing; she knew it was pointless. In the past couple of weeks, there had been speculation of new vampires in town, and Elena knew the stares that Damon got when people saw him as though they knew his secret. Ever since, Damon had been more cautious than Elena had seen him, and he had attempted to act as normal as possible as well, which Elena found irksome, especially at a time like this.

"Let me help you up," Damon said, bending down so that he was brushing Elena's hair out of her face. "We can have Dr. Fell look at you."

Elena nodded, but before she could contain herself, she burst into tears.

"Elena…" Damon said.

"I'm sorry," Elena sobbed. "It's just…"

The entire night was getting to her. She was scared, tired, lost, and confused. She opened her teary eyes so that she could see Damon, who was a blur beyond her tears.

"Tell me what happened. Especially about this mysterious girl."

Trembling, Elena retold what happened, sniffling in between so that she could wipe her eyes or try to stop another bout of tears from overflowing. When she got to the part about the girl, Elena hesitated. She didn't really know what had happened then and how the girl had found her. She doubted that the mysterious girl had been the person following her, but in a way, Elena couldn't be certain of that either.

"I'm just so confused," Elena wailed, pressing her fingers up against the scratch on her forehead.

"Do you feel sick?" Damon asked. "Dizzy?"

"A little dizzy," Elena mumbled.

Damon touched Elena lightly on the chin so that he could raise her head up so that she was facing him. "You know who I am right?"

Elena nodded. "Of course, Damon."

"Do you feel faint?" he asked.

"No," Elena said, shaking her head. "Only when I stand up." She pondered what she'd just said for a moment, knowing she should add more. "I just want to go home."

"Just to be safe, let's have Dr. Fell look at you, okay?" Damon said gently, trying to keep his voice calm so that Elena would consent. "We need to make this seem… normal and human."

Elena looked up at Damon, giving him a shady look. She knew that he was just being overprotective as always, but instead of arguing she just gave a small nod.

"Okay."

"Thank you," Damon said, sounding oddly surprised that Elena even agreed. "Come on. I have my car on the other side of the road."

Elena nodded, and Damon helped her to her feet. Elena felt weak in the knees as though she would collapse, and she grabbed onto Damon for support.

"Steady…" he said.

Stumbling, the two of them made their way over to Damon's car. Elena knew her movements were awkward and uncertain like a newborn puppy, but she couldn't get herself to stabilize.

The two of them barely made it back to the car without Elena hurting herself, and she breathed a sigh of relief that they had made it there in one piece.

Damon took Elena's arms and placed them against the side of the car. "Can you stand for a few moments?" he asked.

Elena gave a small nod, and he held out one hand so that he could catch her if she fell while he opened the door to the passenger seat with the other.

Gently, Damon guided Elena into the passenger seat and she fell into the seat with a sigh of relief. She knew her legs would have given way beneath her if she had tried to stand any longer. She didn't object when Damon buckled her seatbelt for her. He shut the door without saying anything, and she pressed her head up against the car window to use it as a pillow.

She turned to watch as Damon sat down in the driver's seat. He shut his door and stuck the car keys in the ignition.

"We'll be there soon," Damon muttered.

"Thanks…" Elena said, before drifting off to sleep.

The next time she woke up, the car had stopped moving. Elena looked up and saw that Damon was tapping her awake and they were sitting in the parking lot of Mystic Falls Hospital.

"Damon?" Elena croaked groggily.

"We're here," Damon said. "Can you walk inside? I parked as close as I could to the hospital."

Elena could feel her legs again. It was as though being inside of Damon's car had given her some life.

"I think I can walk," she said.

Damon nodded, and he carefully helped her out of the car and began walking. Damon took Elena's hand with one hand, and with the other, steadied her from behind.

When they walked inside, the receptionist gave a small nod as she looked up from her computer, acknowledging Damon and clearly recognizing him.

"Dr. Fell will be with you shortly. She heard you were coming in. It's a bit late, and she's on call right now. Why don't you two take a seat?"

Elena let herself be led to the seats in the waiting room where Damon gave Elena an uncertain look.

"How do you feel?" Damon asked gently.

Elena just gave a small nod, touching her knees. "A bit better."

She looked down at her hand which Damon had taken his coat off of and had wrapped in a small bandage. She didn't remember when this was, but she wasn't going to bother asking him either.

"I'm sure Dr. Fell is just going to check to make sure you don't have a concussion," Damon said. "And check out your finger."

Elena gave Damon a grateful smile. Despite how much she complained, she was glad that he was there for her. And she was glad that he had found her however had had. Maybe Bonnie had used her magic for that, even if she didn't know it.

Elena gave a small sigh, leaning her head against Damon's shoulder so that she could take in the scent of his hair. She smelled the typical shampoo that he used, and she tried to conceal her smile as smelled it, its lavender and macaroon flavor wafting up her nose. Anything about Damon always put a smile on her face, especially at times like these, and she slowly felt the smile spreading across her face.

"Elena Gilbert?"

Elena looked up to see a nurse calling her name, and she slowly rose to her feet, feeling dizzy for a moment. Damon grabbed onto her, steadying her so that she wouldn't fall.

"Careful," he warned.

"You don't need to be so protective." Elena smiled as she and Damon slowly followed the nurse into one of the examination rooms, Elena touching her forehead lightly to make sure she still felt stable. When the nurse opened up one of the doors for them to enter, Elena gently blinked her away in, feeling blinded by the strong lights and white walls.

"Dr. Fell will be with you in a moment." The nurse turned to Elena. "Sit here."

Elena nodded, and she gently lifted herself up onto the examination table. She felt Damon steady her so that she was balanced, and Elena gave him a raised eyebrows look, motioning for him to go away and take his own seat.

"I don't want anything to happen to you," Damon said, an embarrassed look crossing his face.

"I know," Elena said smiling.

Damon turned away and took his own seat as Elena gently pumped her feet back and forth like she was on a swing. She looked up and made eye contact with Damon. "See? I'm fine," she said.

"I just care about you is all," Damon said, giving a quirky smirk.

After a moment, Elena turned to see the door to the doctor's office open, and she saw Dr. Fell enter. She looked exhausted, as though she hadn't slept in days, and Elena looked up to see what time it was. 11:50 PM. It wasn't as late as Elena had expected, but Dr. Fell looked like she needed a nap right then and there.

"Hi, Elena," she said, smiling. "Damon."

"Meredith," Damon replied.

"_Dr. Fell,_" she replied.

"Okay, _Dr._ _Fell_," Damon said ignorantly.

Dr. Fell ignored him turning to Elena. "Hi, Elena," she said. "How are you?"

"Okay," Elena said, choosing her words carefully.

"What happened?" Dr. Fell asked.

Elena gulped. "I—I was driving, and I ran off the road. I think someone was following me." As Elena spoke about it, she felt a shiver run through her, and once again, the terrorizing moment of it came back to her more vivid than ever, and she felt herself beginning to shake. "I don't remember what happened next, but—but… some girl saved me, and I don't know." Elena felt small tears begin to run down her face. "I'm sorry."

Dr. Fell touched Elena's hand lightly. "It's okay. How about I check out your head?"

Elena gave a small nod, and Dr. Fell took her hand and touched it up to the scratch on her forehead. "That looks like it's a few days old."

"The girl gave me blood," Elena said bluntly. "It happened tonight."

Elena turned to Damon, who gave Elena a look that told her to relax. Elena let her shoulders slouch, and she looked back at Dr. Fell.

"It was one of them," Dr. Fell murmured.

"What?" Elena asked.

Dr. Fell looked up as though only just realizing that she had spoken out loud. "N—nothing," she said. "Nothing."

"No, what did you just say?" Elena demanded.

"I'm not supposed to talk about it," Dr. Fell said, taking her hand off of Elena's bleeding finger and writing something down on her clipboard. "I'm going to need to run a CT Scan to see if you have a concussion, which I think you do. It looks as though it was really serious, but… whoever gave you blood made it less uh, serious. And I'm going to need to give you stitches for your finger and remove a small piece of glass that seems to have gotten itself wedged under your skin."

"Dr. Fell," Damon said, standing up, saying Dr. Fell's name as coldly as he could. "What aren't you supposed to talk about?"

Elena felt a small throb in her finger and she gently scrunched it up, hoping it ease the pain. At the same time, she couldn't help but scoff at the fact that Damon didn't care about her condition, but only cared about whatever Dr. Fell was talking about.

Dr. Fell gave Damon a shady look. "Listen, I'm only going to tell _you two_ because I know I won't hear the last of it if I don't."

She paused for a moment, and Elena turned to see Damon's expression, which was simply glowering and interrogating.

"There's a new vampire in town. And she's apparently one of the darkest new vampires out there. She'll either break you or fix you. And," Meredith turned to Elena, "she clearly cared enough to fix you. And I know there's a real reason why. I just don't know what."

* * *

Okay, so I didn't know when there would be an appropriate time to end it because I felt it was getting too long, and it's also been almost a week since I've uploaded :o. So I'm trying to hurry this up for the sake of the account KlarolineXDelena who hasn't left me alone about this, so thank you.

xx.


	5. Chapter 4: Encounters

Sorry for not updating :/ Been super busy lately with finals and stuff (which absolutely suck by the way), but I promise once summer starts I'll be uploading a lot more frequently.

Now, before I rattle on here is chapter 4!

* * *

Chapter 4: Encounters

"A new vampire?" Damon demanded, giving Dr. Fell a pursed look.

Dr. Fell gave Damon a tight look back, warning him to keep quiet. "Listen, I'm not supposed to know about it," she said, "but I overheard one of the other doctors talking about it, and as soon as I saw you…" she indicated to Elena.

"Yep, you just knew it was her," Elena said, crossing her legs.

Dr. Fell turned away for a moment, picking up her clipboard to sketch something down on it before turning to leave. "Listen, I'm going to need to run the CT Scan, but I could also easily fix this problem with some blood that I have."

Elena quickly shook her head. "No, I don't want that. I'd much rather not be contaminated with vampire blood in case—" Elena stopped speaking, trailing off, realizing that she was saying too much.

"It's okay," Dr. Fell smiled. "I understand." She picked up her pager and spoke into it. "Prep for a CT Scan."

There was a muffled scratchy sound and the next moment a reply came through the pager. "On it, Dr. Fell."

"Thanks, Andrew," Dr. Fell said before clipping her pager back onto her white coat. She then turned to Elena. "Look, I'm going to make this brief and concise. Four attacks from the vampire have happened in the past week, and we don't know the source of it. All the blood has been traced back to the same attacker though. The police have got it under cover, and they don't want to worry anyone so they have extra security posted around town. Just don't make this public except for maybe a couple of your friends. I do _not_ want the entire town to know about this."

"Of course," Elena replied.

Damon took a moment before nodding his agreement. Dr. Fell flashed Damon an annoyed look before leaving. "I'll be doing stitches on that finger too, Elena. So don't think you're just going to get out of here."

"Never thought I would," Elena scoffed as Dr. Fell picked up her clipboard and walked out.

Damon turned to Elena the moment that Dr. Fell had left. "Elena, I think Dr. Fell knows more than she's letting on.

"Damon…"

"No, Elena, listen. You are way too soft about this. I don't want you getting hurt. I don't want anyone to get hurt. We have to get to the bottom of this. Dr. Fell is a smart woman; she won't tell us everything if she knows word will spread."

Elena gave Damon a sketchy look, but she knew that he was right. A part of her was grateful to this girl, but a part of her was also in fear. If Dr. Fell was right about her being the most powerful vampire out there, then something was definitely going to happen to one of her friends. And Elena would not let that happen.

* * *

Two hours later Elena and Damon were leaving the hospital, Elena's finger bandaged up having received six stitches and a band-aid on her forehead from her scratch. Damon also had a bottle of painkillers in his pocket for her minor concussion.

"Now, Elena, I want you to come straight home after school every day for the next two weeks," Damon said, lecturing Elena as he led her up to the porch in front of her house.

"Damon, please," Elena said, hiding her smile. "You are way too protective of me."

Damon smiled back. "Only because I care."

They looked at each other for a minute, a bird chirping in the background, the porch lights flickering above them. Elena reached out for the doorknob, but didn't open it, instead turning back to Damon.

"Really," she said. "Thank you for tonight."

After a moment, she reached up and gave him a peck on the cheek and turned away again, but Damon took his hands and put them around her neck, stabilizing her before pressing his lips against hers, embracing her.

Elena felt their lips make contact, and she closed her eyes, taking in the passion of it. After a moment, she pulled away, slipping her hands into Damon's coat pocket and pulling out the painkillers from them.

"Wouldn't want to forget these," she smiled, before heading inside.

As soon as she walked inside, she felt hands wrapped around her in a hug. "You're okay!"

Elena let out a laugh. "Jeremy! Of course I am."

"I just couldn't lose you, Elena," Jeremy said, gripping Elena tighter.

"Jer, you're choking me, "Elena said, pulling away before turning to wear Alaric had a bottle of bourbon grasped in his arms. He extended his arms in a hug.

"Can't neglect your old man here, can you?"

Elena's face broke into a smile. "Alaric," she said giving him a hug.

After a moment, she pulled away, looking at both Jeremy and Alaric seriously. "Have you talked to Stefan?"

Jeremy nodded. "He didn't have much to say."

"Right," Elena said awkwardly, not wanting to acknowledge her ex-boyfriend. "I didn't think he would."

"Elena, he still loves you," Jeremy said.

"But I don't love _him,_" Elena insisted. "He needs to learn to understand that." After a moment she added, "Did any of you two know about the new vampire in town?"

"What?" Jeremy and Alaric asked simultaneously.

Elena, afraid that someone was listening or that the vampire would be able to overhear them with her hearing, leaned in and quickly retold what she had her from Dr. Fell to Jeremy and Alaric.

"Sounds like a new problem," Jeremy said. "Does anyone know who it is?"

Elena shook her head. "No. I mean, apparently she's been around for over a week though, landing scattered attacks on people."

"Maybe we can get Bonnie to do a tracking spell or something," Jeremy suggested.

Elena nodded, suddenly feeling dizzy. She pressed her head into her hands, and in a moment, she felt hands on her back. "You okay?"

Elena looked up to see Alaric. "Just… dizzy. I'm going to head up to bed." She grabbed her coat from beside her where she'd taken it off and slowly headed upstairs. The house suddenly felt uncomfortably empty, and she looked around her, trying to figure out what it was. It was as though Alaric and Jeremy had both disappeared or something, yet another eerie presence seemed to have replaced both of them.

"Hello?" she said, as she heard a creaking nearby.

She spun around as she heard the noise again, and Elena turned to try to see who it was, but couldn't. It was as though the person was there one moment and gone the next.

Elena flung the door open to her bedroom and saw that the window was open. Shivering, she ran over to it and shut it, but the next moment felt a gust of wind behind her. Screaming, she turned around to see who it was, but as she did, she felt someone on top of her, rushed her over to her bed and pinning her down on her head. Elena's already concussed head began to hurt again as she banged it against the headboard.

"Listen, bitch." Terrified, Elena opened up her eyes to see a girl staring down upon her. It took a moment, but Elena suddenly recognized her as the same girl as before. "I saved you once, but that was before I knew who you were. I won't do it again."

Elena let out a terrified scream as Elena saw the girl's eyes turn bloodshot and fangs form in her teeth. She leaned in to bite into Elena's neck, but the next moment something stopped her, and she was out the window before Elena could blink. Elena sat up, panting, her body shaking to see Stefan in the doorway.

"Ste—Stefan," Elena said in shock.

"I heard about what happened," he said. "I wanted to see that you were okay. I didn't know that someone else would be here."

"I don't know her…" Elena said, feeling tears pool in her eyes. Her voice trailed off as she felt Stefan's arms around her. Normally, Elena would have pushed him off saying that she wanted nothing to do with him, but this time she needed anyone there to make her feel okay.

"Shhh," he said gently. "It's okay… we'll just report it to the police saying someone broke in."

"Do you know her?" Elena asked, wiping her eyes, feeling her head instinctively rest against his shoulder.

Elena sensed hesitation in Stefan's voice as he spoke, but she brushed it off as his voice came off strong. "No," he said. "I don't know her. But you can bet I'll figure out who it is."

* * *

Not too impressed with this chapter, but that's okay. It didn't exactly go where I wanted it to, but oh well! Thanks for reading.

xx.


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